Cloud Computing and Organization Issues
Cloud computing is a new data storage technology that has created quite a stir in recent times in the distributed computing community. It is the concept of connecting large groups of remote servers through network which enables a centralized data base and accessibility of different computer resources. Small and large organizations have taken a fancy to this new development as it saves a lot of time of installation and maintenance of their computer architecture but there are various issues associated with cloud computing that aren’t fully known by people or are largely ignored. These issues need to be handled because it may result in intellectual property theft and privacy issues that these kinds of organizations desperately rely in order to remain competitive. (Johnston, 2008). Like we discussed before, the main issue faced by these organizations is privacy. Even the cloud computing companies like Google and Dropbox themselves have stressed the need for increased security checks and tried to prevent misuse of the cloud data by being open about what they have to offer but still, most of the public is unaware of the risks associated with their dispersed data storage. The personal data hacking has become the greatest risk for these companies as complaints regarding its disclosure have been coming in recent times whether accidentally or deliberately by proliferators. The privacy advocates have been criticizing the model of the cloud computing for giving the hosting companies a lot of access to the data between the host company and the end user. Such unwanted disclosure of information includes sharing of information without a warrant to law enforcement agencies like NSA and CIA. Since previous encounters of these organizations have not been in the public’s interest in recent times, it would be unwise to trust them with unauthorized access. Litigation against unauthorized access should be pursued by all involved. There is also the case of updates on cloud service providers that are implemented rather forcefully on end users. These updates may improve the cloud service but they also force organizations to change the way they are working (Staff, 2014).
Organizations Using Public or Private Cloud
The business reason for choosing a private or public cloud for all or part of an organization’s computer architecture is simple. It allows streamlined access to data and provide valuable backup to all the data of the organization with minimal cost of hosting. Instead of physical hard drive and private data banks, the information stored online with no risk of data loss. But as we have discussed there is a risk of information and data disclosure so this usage should only be done carefully. The private clouds are becoming increasingly obsolete because of physical and economical hassles. But it is still advised that the more sensitive and secret information should be stored in the private clouds of each entity. The more general and public data could be stored and maintained on the cloud servers till the service providers can assure us of their foolproof security. Thus, it is not advised to store all of the information on private servers and nor it is advised to be uploaded on the security lapsed cloud servers. An intelligent use of both can help the corporations balance their books (Johnston. 2008).
References
Johnston, B., “Cloud computing is a trap, warns GNU founder Richard Stallman”. The Guardian, 29 September 2008.
"Demystifying Cloud Computing". The Journal of Defense Software
Engineering (CrossTalk) 2011 (Jan/Feb): 16–21. Retrieved11 December 2014.)
Staff, V., Top 10 Cloud computing Risks and Concerns” (2014) v3.co.uk. 9 May, 2014.
Accessed 13 December 2014.
http://www.v3.co.uk/v3-uk/news/2343547/top-10-cloud- computing-risks-and-concerns
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